It was the last days of elementary school, Jess was now going to start writing her future, within two months she and all the other students were supposed to choose the direction their lives would take, she of course, wanted to be a superhero.

Which child with superhuman gifts would not want it? Even after the fateful Icy Massacre, with society afraid for the safety of the next generation, the position of superhero was more coveted than ever by young people, even by Jess who has something that differs her from all other children: No matter the difficulty, she always keeps her smile. Sorry if her differential is not something as glorious as a hidden superpower, an intellect of more than two hundred IQ's or that it comes from a pre-destined line of greatness, even your lineage could be extinct if the doctors had not acted in time, but this is a story that should stay for another moment, reader, we now focus on our star in this story: Jessica.

The sun was burning over her head, while she walked to school, even with the temperature nearing 113° F, she did not remove her heavy black coat and touch it on her head. Maybe if they took longer to recognize her, it would take longer to start "playing" with her.

She firmly believed that they were just jokes, that if they knew how much it hurt her, they would stop, because they were good people deep down, but she didn’t want to be a spoiler, she didn’t want to cut everyone’s fun just because she didn’t she could take harder games, on the contrary, she only smiled when she wanted to cry, and apologized when she wanted to run, after all, that was what the teachers said when she was younger and complained, "Be strong, Jessica", " Do you want to be a superhero and can't take any games? ", and the adults were always right, always.

It had been ten years since she had completely lost her hearing in her right ear, and partially in her left, with the help of a device, she could hear sounds loud and enough to read lips, so they always came from behind and picked her up. Surprised no matter how cautious she was, Marie, the girl with the gift of invisibility, always greeted her with a shove in the back, strong enough for her to fall and this time was no different. She smiled apologetically and gathered her things together, the other girls laughing past her. She sat in front of the school, always hidden, after all, there would be no reason to tease her if she were not seen, she could not hear the signal, but she was always attentive. When the students started to head towards the classrooms, she knew that the signal was only a few minutes away.

She sat in the first desk, some people always "greeted" her with a little slap on the head, when she once asked why they did it, they laughed and said it was because she didn't hear the "good morning" they were giving, and this was the best way to get her attention, she thought that a nudge in the arm would be more practical, but she didn’t want to argue, after all, they were just wishing her a good day, but that didn’t happen when Rainbow was in the room, she he wouldn't let anyone "play" with Jess.

She had this nickname because her hair was colored, like a rainbow, she was extremely beautiful and got along with almost everyone, except Aiko and Marie, she was also the most highly regarded in the school, if she doesn't have a city, to become a superhero, they even said she would have a guaranteed place at Brave Heart Academy, the best superhero training institution, one of the few that prevailed without changes in the faculty after the Icy Massacre, and of course, Jess secretly venerated this girl, she always dreamed of being like her, especially because she didn’t keep silent in the face of injustice, unlike herself, Rainbow wasn’t a coward. Although her gift is only to project light, Jess had signed up for several different gyms and institutions and would receive their answers this holiday, as this would be the first step towards becoming a great heroine, as she wishes to be.

The break was a terror, sometimes she waited for Rainbow to pass behind her, feeling "protected", but it was not always that she managed to escape her shadow, fortunately in her silent world, she did not hear what was said about her as she passed, all she heard was an extremely low humming conversation, but the bumps "unintentionally", that she felt and felt more than just physically.

Today was not the case, she managed to follow Rainbow, the one who always noticed Jess surrounding her, like a shy little animal, she just looked and smiled, she had a certain liking for that fragile little girl, she hated those who hurt her, because she was a very busy and in-demand girl in high school affairs, she couldn't keep an eye on Jess, even if from afar.

She didn't want to see Jess as a weak, helpless girl, avoided approaching her so they wouldn't think she was begging for protection, felt an intense agony when she saw that girl just smile and apologize after hitting and making fun of her, Rainbow, deep down, wanted to be as good as Jess, but she felt that her purity was nowhere near that Jess purity.

After passing the corridors, it was easier to avoid people, she was behind the parking lot, where only the teachers went to smoke from time to time, there she would sit and always watch the clock, so as not to be late for classes, something that happened to a frequency that made her ashamed, the teachers didn't care about her, so if she was late, nobody said anything and that irritated the others, they believed that she had certain actions on purpose to take advantage of her condition.

Today was different, Jess was so focused on her watch that she didn't notice the two girls coming, Marie and Aiko. She looked up at them, she saw their lips moving, but she couldn't make out what they were talking about because of the sun, Aiko took her by the collar and lifted her up, she was now screaming for Jess to hear.

— I'm talking to you, freak!

She released the girl after several shakes, Jessica almost fell, almost kept her balance, she apologized to both of them and said that she had not been able to read her lips, they both laughed and said something else that Jess was unable to decipher. Marie pushed her hard against the wall by the shoulder, keeping her mouth in front of her eyes.

— So why do you use that crap on your ear if you don't hear anything?

After saying this, Aiko violently ripped his hearing aid out of his ear, Jess knew how expensive it was, so he tried to get it back, Aiko threw it away with a laugh. Jess tried to run after her device, but was held by her arm by Aiko, who was speaking very slowly in front of her eyes for her to understand.

— I hate weak people. You disgust me, you spoiled. You tell adults that you want to be a hero, but you act like a scared little mouse, just to get their support. You don't deserve to be a hero!

She was almost screaming now, Aiko was different from the other kids, even though they were mean, Jess felt that they weren't bad, but there was something in Aiko's eyes, her eyes were as black as her hair, and Jess wondered if that was also the case. her soul, the only person she could feel real malice in. She raised her hand to slap Jess in the face, when her hand was held by a blue colored hand. It was Rainbow, who was projecting an energy that was able to take the form she wanted and became solid, just one of her gifts. She squeezed Aiko's wrist with that projection while looking hard at her.

— Enough. Look at your attitudes, who really doesn't deserve to be a heroine here, between you two?

Everything was quiet, many children were now watching all the confusion in the parking lot. As much as Aiko and Marie hated Rainbow, they also feared her, Marie pulled Aiko's arm out of there, and she allowed herself to be guided, without taking her eyes off Rainbow, who returned her penetrating gaze. She walked over to Jess's hearing aid, picking it up from the floor and taking it to her, when she got close to her, she saw that her ear was oozing blood, due to the tug Aiko gave, she ended up hurting Jess's ear, all around her it was now spinning, she wanted to vomit, Rainbow almost despaired, but she sighed and thought quickly, taking Jess to the infirmary.

The nurse leaned against the door, Rainbow was looking worriedly at it, who adjusted her glasses.

— Don't worry Emanuelle, it was just a cut in her ear, what probably happened, was that Jessica was disoriented due to the shaking she received.

The girl asked several questions, she was not convinced that Jess was really well, the school always covered up these types of 'incidents' so as not to stain her reputation, even more so in the case of a defective student, as those whose disabled are called. The director arrived to intervene in the situation, a burly man, who always wore a shabby and old suit, brown in color and had the few hairs that were left licked to the side, he put his heavy hand on de Emanuelle's shoulder, which recoiled at his touch.

— It's okay, Emanuelle. You did well to bring Miss Jessica straight to the nurse, acting in a controlled manner during an incident, I will mention on your resume, of course, if you confirm the version that Miss Jessica was sick and hurt her ears due to a fall.

Her desire now was to go after that man, take his collar and ask him if he had gone mad! That was unacceptable behavior, it was absurd that the guilty ones do not receive due punishment.

— What about who did it? How about Aiko and Marie?!

— It is the last week of classes, Emanuelle, and although she is not a student as exemplary as you, Aiko has a great future ahead of her in the heroic field. We will not stain your resume with a fool like that, especially when it is a defective one.

She had to control every force of her being in order not to energize her hands and hit that man with everything she had, of all the terrible things the world has, nothing made her more angry than an injustice.

— I won't shut up. This is anti-heroic conduct, to allow someone like her to be a super heroine is to spit on every ideal of justice that we have.

The man moved a little closer to Rainbow, making his figure even bigger to intimidate the girl, of course only his image would not be able to coerce someone as determined as she was, but the power in his hands over the fate of those young people, determined that he was the one who would set the course for this story.

— I can stain yours by your temper and, due to the misuse of your gifts against young Aiko, witnesses abound. Except for her chances of being a super hero and of course, if I send the government a request to revoke the aid of that defective, due to misconduct, she would be sent to a reformatory, do we have a deal?

That man was dirty, Rainbow didn't bother to answer, he just turned his back on that man and walked purposefully down the corridor, after a few steps, she looked back, deep in the eyes of that man who made her feel disgusted at the time , to make you a promise:

— When I become the Ambassador of Justice, things will be different, I will not let men like you manipulate justice.

By order of the principal, Jessica was released after the end of class, the principal knew that she was an extremely passive girl, so it was easy to convince her to accept her version of the story, after all, Jess did not want to harm others.

With her backpack on her back, she left school, lived alone since she was ten years old, being emancipated at the same age, due to the consistency of the current society, orphaned children who were not quoted for 'grandiose' futures received only a monetary aid from the government and lived on their own. She did not intend to go straight to her home, she would go to a park that had been abandoned for a long time before, there she trained in secret every day, away from the disapproving and ironic looks of others, as it was a very remote place, there was rarely anyone around, but on this day, Jess wished with all her strength that someone had passed over there and stopped what was about to happen.

She was pulled by the backpack violently, falling on her back to the floor, seeing the faces of Marie and Aiko, she tried to get up, but this time she was grabbed by the hair by Aiko, making her fall to her knees at her feet, if they spoke something and laugh, Jess couldn’t know, kept her head down in the hope that by showing submission, they would leave her alone, quite the contrary, it just ignited Aiko who lifted her up with her own hands and forced her violently against the wall .

— I will speak at the level of your eyes, you damn thing, for you to understand, because of you I almost had my school history tarnished.

— I'm sorry... Aiko... I don't...

Before the apology could be completed, she hit her hard on the face, her black eyes looked like the reflection of her soul to Jess, her eyes went from black to scarlet red, there was a line that Aiko had never crossed in all those years of tormenting, she had never used her gifts on anyone, but now she was crossing that line to teach this weak girl what her place was. Everything started to turn, Jess started to have flashes in her memory of terrible moments in her life, it seemed like hours of reliving her torments, until she came back to herself, still seeing Aiko in front of her, with her fearful red eyes. The memories that Jessica had were especially terrible, the moment she came to, the tears were uncontrollable.

— You are weak, I disgust you, DISGUST! You keep your mouse voice saying that you are going to be a super hero, you stain an entire legacy, wanting to associate something as noble with something like you, but you can't even defend yourself, how are you going to save other people, little mouse? And now, I will live what you always dreamed of. I will be a super hero, I will graduate from an academy specializing in the formation of super heroes, while you will keep crying and making people feel sorry for you to get what you want!

At this moment, her eyes went back to the black cold of before, the arms that pressed Jess against the wall loosened and she pulled away, she just stood there saying nothing until they both left. When the two girls finally disappeared from view, Jess ran to the park, where she burst into tears alone, again, partly because of what she had heard from Aiko, but the main thing was the memories she had brought up, memories of her life, of the worst moments, in particular, a single moment, which was a wound that Jess could not leave to heal, alone she stayed until the night, when she finally went home, her world was especially lonely, empty and silent, always.

Jess missed the last four days of classes and with that, she had graduated from elementary school, which would come from now on, was the beginning of the rest of her life.

Despite the previous problems, Jess was taking a new direction in her life, she decided that now it was time to leave all that behind and move on, as she always did, except that now with a difference: She would work hard to prove to herself and Aiko that the value of a hero is in his attitudes and not in his weakness.

The first whole month the girl had the same routine, woke up early, made the preparations then went to the park, where she trained both her body and its release of light until dark, where she returned home exhausted to sleep and repeat the same routine at the following day, the month had already closed and some days had also passed, normally the academies sent their answer before the end of the first month so that their students had adequate time to prepare and Jess had not received any answer so far of the various academies she had signed up for, but she wouldn’t let that shake her workouts that were of total focus at the time. She tapped an abandoned toy iron plate with her hands, thus improving her strength and endurance until the cuts started to spill blood, this being her milestone for the end of the hand training, then the kicking would come and so on.

A doubt that can reach my dear reader after reading these verses, the genetic condition that gave human beings the capacity for gifts, is also responsible for a possible increase in physical attributes such as strength, agility and etc. Not something common to everyone who has gifts, but only those who train their physical part at superhuman levels.

Her training was intensified today, with only a third of the day to go, her body could no longer stand, making Jess fall to the floor and she was startled when she felt a hand on her shoulder turning her body on its back, the person who had looking at him, he seemed as surprised as she was to see that the girl was still conscious, but the surprise on that boy's face lasted only a few seconds, and his face was serious again. His hair was black as well as his eyes that seemed empty, his pale skin and strong dark circles gave him the impression of being a person who lived in eternal sadness, his clothes looked like rags being just a brown robe that went up to his feet with a cap that he wasn't wearing it at the time, the various patches told Jess that the robe must be extremely old. He helped her to sit down by giving her a bottle with a yellow juice inside, Jess held the bottle for fear of taking the liquid from it and keeping watchful eyes on the boy.

— It's just orange juice. Your body needs electrolytes right now, don't be afraid to drink.

She then took a short sip, just to say that she had taken it and then thanked the boy. She noticed that his cold eyes focused on her hands that with a slight shame, Jess hid them because she did not like people to see her marks of effort.

— These marks, you train a lot. But I believe that this is not the best way to exercise. Work your mind first, then your body and gift, you will have better results.

— Are you... a... superhero?

From the way Jess spoke, as if the words were foreign to her, the boy noticed that there was something different about her, deducing that it must be deaf.

— Hero?

The boy's voice sounded weak and distant, for Jess it was very strange, normally the word hero lit a sparkle in people's eyes, a flame of hope that was common to everyone even in Aiko, which Jess secretly noticed when it appeared some superhero subject, she saw her eyes fill with that ardor, but this boy seemed to have only the cold inside his body.

— I am not one, I never was one. Do you want to be one?

— Yea!

— Why?

This question took her by surprise, after all, everyone wanted to be heroes, there was no clear and obvious reason, usually people just wanted to, which made Jess think for a while.

— People... They need... Help... And I want to be able to... Help them.

He watched her for a moment, making even the girl feel uncomfortable with that questioning look on her.

— You will be a great super heroine. Those who train only their bodies and their gifts, tend to achieve strength, with strength comes glory and recognition and with these comes arrogance, lust and pride, the ideal is tarnished when doing good does not become the priority of a hero and bound by rules, they cease to do what is necessary, but the one whose mind is polite does not allow himself to fall into temptations like these, so he does not deviate from his path, when falling, remember the reason why you fight and need to win.

She was glazed on her lips so as not to miss a single word of what he spoke, for some reason she felt that even if she didn't agree with exactly everything he said, there was a lot of wisdom in her words, a wisdom from someone who seemed to have lived a long time although he doesn’t seem to be much older than her. Jess thanked him for his advice, now feeling safe to drink the drink he had given her, she wanted to ask him some questions but the boy said he had to do something very important at the moment but before leaving he told her if Jess would follow the path of her dreams and become a super heroine, probably her paths would cross again, she watched him leave the park walking calmly, while Jess reflected on his words, his last words were something a little strange to say. After a few minutes she also decided to go home.

Lying on his bed the words of that strange man came to mind, his body despite its fragile appearance was probably capable of handling an ordinary adult man without problems and its blasts of light, although weak, were able to at least bring down a person what it is clear that for an official superhero, it was just a joke, she put herself in various scenarios where she would face a criminal with some gift and the answer she had was always the same: in her current condition she would probably be defeated with ease after all, her gift served more as a support than for a direct confrontation, the answer became increasingly clear in her mind, she could only be a student at some academy if she was able to overcome the limitations of her body using her mind.